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Diversity Council promotes optimism, awareness by Michael Baker Public Relations As George McTeer spoke about the woodpecker, everyone was listening. This particularly persistent bird had been pecking away at an oak tree for hours without getting anywhere. He pecked, poked, nibbled and knocked, but to no avail. Finally, as he was about to give up, a huge bolt of lightning struck the tree, splitting it in half. Dazed, the woodpecker stopped, stared at the tree for a moment, then flew away. A few minutes later, he returned, with four other woodpeckers in tow. As they lit near the fallen oak, the woodpecker’s friends gaped in astonishment. Triumphantly, he turned to them, smiling, and said, “See? I told y’all I’d knock that sucker down!” McTeer’s non sequitir marked one of the lighter moments in an afternoon of serious discussion at MUSC, when the College of Dental Medicine held its annual Dean’s Council on Diversity on June 27. Council members and returning alumni met over lunch to discuss the permeation of minorities within the field of dentistry in South Carolina and to witness the presentation of the first annual McTeer Dental Scholarship. Dr. Richard DeChamplain, professor and dean, College of Dental Medicine, presents CDM student Tiara Bryant with the McTeer Dental Scholarship. The scholarship is named after Dr. George C. McTeer Sr., right, the first African-American graduate from the college. The McTeer scholarship is named in honor George C. McTeer Sr., the first African-American to graduate from the College of Dental Medicine. McTeer graduated from MUSC during the height of the civil rights movement and has become a symbol of diversity’s triumph over adversity. He attended this year’s council to present the scholarship to Tiara Bryant, a freshman at the College of Dental Medicine. Unlike the woodpecker in his joke, McTeer said that he is not one to accept undue credit. To him, the Dean’s Council for Diversity represents the cooperation of all of the council members and alumni representatives in an effort to improve the College of Dental Medicine. “I’m very impressed,” McTeer said, “because the students at MUSC are given the opportunity to develop their skills and to perform at a high level.”  For her part, Bryant received a generous hand in her own development at MUSC. Thanks to the McTeer scholarship, she will receive $1,000 each year for the next four years to support her education at the College of Dental Medicine. The financial gift was just one part of the afternoon’s agenda. Also on the schedule was a discussion of the new dental facility currently under construction, an analysis of this year’s minority student statistics, and a brainstorming session on fundraising methods. Raymond addresses status of new facility Vice president for academic affairs and provost, John R. Raymond, M.D., opened the afternoon’s events by updating the status of the proposed new James B. Edwards College of Dental Medicine facility. The building will span 100,000 square feet and rise six stories. The MUSC-approved design, which includes new operatories and laboratories, now lies in the hands of the City of Charleston for its final decision.  Stephanie Oberempt, director of development at the College of Dental Medicine, said that in order to complete the building process, the College of Dental Medicine is counting on $29 million in private and public funding. The State of South Carolina has agreed to provide $19 million to the project, and MUSC has received another $10 million in pledges from the private sector. Despite the seemingly hefty price tag, Raymond believes that the new building is imperative for the future success of the College of Dental Medicine. “The college must have a facility that is equal in quality to that of our faculty and our students,” Raymond said.  Raymond hopes to have the building completed within the next five years. Council discusses minority enrollment Having covered the financial aspect of the council, the discussion soon moved to the heart of the group’s mission: increasing minority enrollment. “We need the best students to stay in South Carolina, to practice in South Carolina,” Raymond stressed, “because our legacy of training minorities is not a good one, and we need to fix that.” CDM Office of Diversity director, Gwendolyn Brown, DMD, suggested that a change in the admissions process would help attract more minority students to the College of Dental Medicine. In the past, she said, students have been admitted strictly on academic merit. Now, MUSC is looking into other factors in admissions, such as the need to place more minority graduates into the field of dentistry in South Carolina. Brown said that studies have shown that people are more likely to see a dentist who represents them, in race, lifestyle, or other social factors. Therefore, the only way to improve minority health in South Carolina is to increase the number of minority health practitioners.  “The number one reason that children in South Carolina miss school is a lack of proper dental care,” Brown said. “Because the state has such a large minority population, we have to encourage more minorities to enter the field of dentistry.” A large part of the problem with getting more minority students into the College of Dental Medicine lies in the college’s inability to make significant contact with potential students before they enroll at MUSC. While other, larger schools—the University of Michigan and Ohio State, for example—offer summer programs to teach students about their dental schools, the Medical University of South Carolina has none. Council members and alumni alike acknowledged that these summer programs are an integral part of the recruiting process. While many students may visit MUSC, those who have attended such programs at other universities may feel a sense of loyalty and obligation to the other schools. These students inevitably enroll elsewhere without fully learning about what MUSC has to offer. Oberempt explained that the college’s lack of funding prevented it from offering such valuable summer opportunities. Furthermore, she said, low funding was a direct cause of the college’s inability to provide scholarships and fellowships to incoming students. Brown agreed. “Dental school is so expensive,” she said, “and we only have scholarships available for students who are presently enrolled, not for incoming freshmen.”  Each year, she watches with growing frustration as other schools snatch up dental students from South Carolina, as she knows that most won’t be coming back. Brown said that students are more likely to practice in the geographic area in which they graduate.  Put it all together, and it would appear that the timetable for replenishing South Carolina’s shortage of dentists, especially minority practitioners, is a long one. Still, the council members and alumni representatives at the Dean’s Council seemed determined to turn “someday” into “someday soon.” The group discussed opportunities to improve the college’s finances, including improved grant-writing and grant-presentation techniques and offered suggestions on how to increase student and faculty recruitment. Overall enrollment experiences a strong year An even more favorable light was cast on the council when the college’s general enrollment numbers for the coming year were announced. Wendy Stephens, student services program coordinator at the College of Dental Medicine, presented the new statistics to the attendees. “This was one of our most competitive academic years ever,” Stephens said. She added that the College of Dental Medicine had rejected many students that typically would have been accepted into MUSC. Almost 500 students applied, and 55 were accepted. Fifty-two of the new students are from South Carolina, representing almost half of the number of in-state applications that the College of Dental Medicine received. The average GPA of this new crop was an impressive 3.6.  Stephens said that despite the healthy overall numbers, the college still struggled to increase the number of African-American and Hispanic students that were accepted. Three African-American students enrolled in the college, along with three Hispanic students. Although the numbers seem low, Stephens pointed out that the addition of the Hispanic students actually doubled their number currently enrolled at the College of Dental Medicine. As the Dean’s Council wound down, Brown seemed encouraged by what the council members and alumni had accomplished this year.  “It was a great meeting, and overall, I’m very optimistic,” she concluded. “We’ve had some good suggestions that may very well lead to an increase in the number of minority faculty and students at the college.” Brown recognized that the foundation for improvement is set, but everyone at the College of Dental Medicine is going to have to work hard to accomplish their vision. “It’s definitely an uphill battle,” she said, “but I truly believe that we will eventually win.”       Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to petersnd@musc.edu or catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778.